Wake in the dream
by nninfae
Summary: TakeruxMako, set right after the Tensou Sentai Goseiger vs. Samurai Sentai Shinkenger movie. Mako is finally back from Hawaii, and finds out that the Shiba mansion is where she really belongs, even though some things are not exactly the same as before.
1. Wake in the dream

This is my first Samurai Sentai Shinkenger fanfic, and it's also the first time I write a story in english. As a perfectionist, I revised it throughly multiple times and got CrystalProductions27 to beta-read it for me. But even so, since english is not my mother language, it might have some odd phrasing and I'm deeply sorry for that!

Thank you so much Stace for all your help and your amazingly inspiring videos. (L)

Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing. :3

Written under the influence of _Time enough for tears - The Corrs._ ^^

**1.**

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><p>Shiraishi Mako opened her eyes in the morning, facing the ceiling of her room. It felt so familiar she just stood there for a moment with a faint smile on her face. <em>I'm back home<em>, she couldn't help but think. The Shiba mansion, even after a whole year living with her parents in Hawaii, still felt like her true home. Well, that was not totally unexpected, of course. After all, this is the room where she lived during the most important year of her life - a year when she fulfilled her destiny, becoming ShinkenPink and helping to defeat Chimatsuri Doukoku.

After the war ended, she couldn't help but feel a little empty inside. Sitting on the plane that took her further and further away from her homeland, she felt a massive loneliness, a horrible feeling of detachment, of losing her own identity, or a part of herself. But of course, afterwards, the feeling faded and disappeared, as she got used to her new life in Hawaii, her new home, her parents and neighbors, the local culture and even the strange hot weather. She adapted herself after a whole year, or so she thought. She made friends and got a tan, learned english and took care of her mother. It felt like they had never been apart. It felt only natural, didn't it? She almost felt at home.

Well, almost.

But she could only understand that now, when looking at the ceiling in her own room at the Shiba mansion, feeling that her spirit was somehow lifted by nothing but that very sight. "I'm home", she muttered then, feeling a gentle warmth fill her chest.

As she stood up and got dressed, she remembered the events of the past couple of days - being summoned by Jii-san to fight the Gedoushuu once more, being expected at the airport by those two strangers wearing Kuroko clothes, seeing everyone again, and feeling... like they never even parted. _This is where I belong_, she felt more than thought, while looking at Kotoha-chan, Chiaki and Ryunosuke... until she understood what had happened to Takeru, of course.

The rest of the day was a long and somewhat a blurry fight, as they learned who the Gosei angels were, and got attacked by no one but Takeru himself, with his ShinkenRed clothes that had partially turned black. He had a weird unfamiliar cruelty shining inside his eyes when he murmured with a deeper voice, "Ippitsu Soujou". If GoseiKnight and Genta didn't interfere... Mako shook her head, putting her hair up and then opening the sliding door. Everything worked out fine in the end. They combined their power with the Goiseiger's, and Shiba Kaoru gave to GoseiRed the key to rescue Takeru from Chimatsuri Buredoran's influence.

She sighed, looking through the veranda doors to the familiar training space outside. It was too soon now, with that grayish color that proceeds the sunrise filling the air around her. For a second, everything she felt and breathed was the environment around her, the faint light that had just started to cross the sky and the peace and quiet that told her no one had woken up yet.

"It's good to be home", she said through a deep breath, smiling softly. And then, she more felt than heard that someone was there with her. She was not alone. "Good morning", she said mildly, turning her head to face him. "Takeru."

"Haa. Good Morning", he answered silently, taking a step closer towards her.

"How are your injuries?" He had got pretty hurt during yesterday's battle. They all did, but Takeru suffered the most, as usual. She smiled softly at that thought: he was always so quick to risk his life for everyone else's.

"Better. Thank you."

"Mmm", she replied quietly, looking in his eyes. That too was so familiar - the way his serious face seemed always to hide a terrible burden. His obvious sadness plunged into her heart, and she suddenly knew - just like that - that he was probably the loneliest person she ever met.

In the past she sometimes felt like she could somehow grasp that sadness of his. She felt like she was close to him enough to understand his feelings, and when he revealed himself to be a Kagemusha, not the real head of the Shiba clan, she couldn't help but feel like she had failed. Failed in understanding his true problems, and failed in helping him through them.

"Why are you up so soon?" Takeru's voice stopped her train of thought. He sounded calm, almost meditative, and she suddenly realized that she had just been staring at him all that time.

"Ah. Probably it's just the time zone. Yesterday I went to sleep too early, I think", her answer sounded just a little louder than a whisper. "What about you?"

"I don't know", he said, looking away from her. There was something in his expression, like a sudden darkness as his eyes passed through the vanishing stars. "I just woke up and couldn't sleep again."

"Are you thinking about yesterday?" she asked softly, following an abrupt perception. "About fighting us?"

A moment passed before he slowly nodded his head. "Yes", he confessed simply.

"It wasn't you, Takeru", she replied, offering him a tender smile. "We all know that. Nobody blames you, I promise. We're just happy Alata got to bring you back."

He lowered his eyes a bit, and finally nodded.

"Take-" she started, raising her hand to touch his shoulder. But before her arm could go all the way, his voice silenced hers:

"But yet, I remember everything that I did."

Her hand froze in the space between them as her eyes widened. He finally raised his head and the look on his face - her heart sank as she could almost touch the sadness that was dancing in his eyes.

"Takeru..." she whispered, taking a step closer to him and, as if some sort of internal resistance had broken off, she embraced him, holding him completely in her arms. "Stop doing that", she murmured softly, touching his right shoulder with her cheek. "Stop torturing yourself."

He didn't move inside her embrace, looking at the top of her head with somewhat surprised eyes.

"You are probably the best person I know", she said then, raising her eyes to his. Her expression showed her mixed feelings of compassion, sadness and affection. "We love you, Takeru. Not as our lord, but as... you. You're not alone anymore. And as I live, you will never be alone again. So please... stop torturing yourself, because you're hurting someone I care deeply for."

Takeru simply stood there for a moment, like her arms had paralyzed him. But then, slowly, he nodded again.

"I'm sorry", he whispered. The rising sun reflected in his eyes as his tongue slowly touched his upper lip. Mako's heart jumped abruptly at that sight, and she became very conscious of how close their faces were. "I'm sorry to make you feel this way", he said silently. Under her hold, his chest was moving slowly with his breath, and the warmth of his body touched her through his clothes.

Mako took a sudden step back, feeling somewhat embarrassed. Her heart was pounding inside her chest, and her face felt extremely warm. For some reason, she was unexpectedly thinking about the color and shape of his eyes, his height and the size of his shoulders, and how his cheek mole complimented his face.

Well, of course she always perceived how handsome he was, the same way she always noticed that Ryunosuke's smile was beautiful, and that Kotoha was probably the cutest girl she had ever seen. _Of course, I have eyes_, she thought somewhat ironically to herself. _But..._

But now, it was like she was... really, really _seeing_ him. Not as a fighting lord, not as a comrade, and not like the tortured, lonely soul she sometimes glimpsed, but... as a man.

As for Takeru, he stood there, probably surprised by Mako's actions, maybe wondering what he had done wrong for her to pull away like that. "Mako..." he said her name, seeming rather confused.

"I'm sorry", she replied, noticing how odd her actions actually were. "I'm sorry, I..."

"Good morning, Tono! Mako-chan!" Ryunosuke's cheerful voice filled up the space between them as they both looked up.

"Good morning", said Mako, taking another step back.

"Good morning", said Takeru, after a hesitating moment.

"It's so good to be back, don't you think? I was thinking about practicing together today, for old time's sake." Ryunosuke's enthusiasm was obvious, since he was even wearing his blue hakama.

"Ahum" answered Mako, getting a grip on herself and trying to sound natural. "Today when I woke up, my first thought was that it was good to be back home. I missed you guys more than I even though possible."

"Oooh!", exclaimed Ryu-san, not being able to contain himself and holding Mako excitedly. She felt his arm around her shoulders and smiled honestly, not able to help but notice that the feeling of proximity to Ryunosuke was really different from what she felt holding Takeru in her arms. "But it's true, isn't it? Even though I love kabuki, I missed being a samurai and fighting by Tono-tachi's side... But more than anything, I missed living here, seeing you guys every day, practicing our Mojikara writings and having sword training together."

"So", replied Mako, stepping softly away from Ryunosuke's grasp and giving both of them a cheerful smile. "I'm going to change into my hakama. Be right back."

She tried to be honest to herself while taking off her clothes inside her room. This morning was not the first time she felt different near Takeru. When that Ayakashi had attacked an island causing the villagers to become paranoid and blood-thirsty and Fuwa Juuzou injured ShinkenRed rendering him unconscious, Mako took him to safety and tended to his wounds. Inside an abandoned cottage, she took his shirt off, cleaned his injure up thoroughly so it wouldn't get infected and put a ligature around his chest and shoulder. And as she treated him, her fingers touched his surprisingly smooth skin. At that moment, Mako experienced mixed feelings, because even though she worried about both his wound and patent sadness and admired his strength and bravery as her lord and comrade, her heart raced uncontrollably under her breast. Just the sight of him, vulnerable in her arms, his eyes softly closed and his relaxed lips... not to mention the sight of his bare chest. Well, she tried to focus on the bandaging.

And afterwards, when he finally awoke, he still bore that absolute perplex sadness in his eyes that made her seem to forget her own feelings. So what he was an attractive man and made her heart pound? She was just too worried about what he was going through to care.

But now... well, it all seemed quite obvious.

She always loved Takeru, but that's beside the point. She also loved Kotoha, Ryunosuke, Chiaki and Genta, didn't she? That was a family love, almost a motherly love, because she felt this urge to protect all of them, feed them and see their happiness. And she never had questions about feeling that way towards Takeru. No, no. She really loved him. As her lord, her comrade, her friend... and as a family member. But... that was not the reason why her heart raced and her cheeks seemed to be on fire every time she experienced any sort of intimacy with him.

And the mere fact that he was a handsome, rather mysterious, attractive man didn't quite explain it either. She met lots of handsome guys at Hawaii, even though at the time she always felt like something was off about them. _Of course_, she used to think to herself then. _Probably it's some kind of cultural shock, I'm probably "too japanese" to fall for a hawaiian guy._ But didn't she catch herself comparing them to Shiba Takeru, almost unconsciously? She suddenly remembered, almost surprisingly, that he looked really good in a tuxedo, and were even better looking in the montsuki hakama he wore when they pretended to get wedded to attract a Gedoushuu that was kidnapping brides. And she remembered looking at a quite handsome hawaiian guy and thinking to herself, _he would probably not look __**that**__ good in a montsuki hakama._

Mako sighed, finishing to wrap her own blue training hakama, and noticing that they should probably eat their breakfast before jumping into sword practice like that. And that she probably would have pointed that out back then when Ryunosuke had proposed it, if she were not feeling so... well, nevermind. She looked at herself in the mirror, feeling both puzzled and happy with what she saw. Puzzled because it had been a long time since she last dressed up that way... and happy, because wearing that hakama was like waking up under that familiar ceiling, since both feelings hit her like a warm spring breeze. _Home at last_, she thought one more time, having an unexpected intuition that she would never leave again.


	2. Not as hard as it seems

Chapter 2 (yaaay). Hope you enjoy it ^_^

**2.**

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><p>Takeru moved his arms down, drawing a perfect stroke in the air with his bamboo sword. Ryunosuke's sword met his with an audible clash, repeatedly doing so as they changed positions, and even though the kabuki actor felt a little bit rusty, their fight was as amazing to watch as always. The Shiba 19th head had this focused, almost severe look on his face while fought his comrade with precise, calculated gestures. Sitting at the veranda and holding on to her own sword, Mako observed him with absent-minded eyes.<p>

His strength was amazing, she thought to herself, noticing how his arms moved in a graciously manner, and how long and beautiful was his neckline under his raven black hair. As she stood there, helpless, it felt like she was hypnotized by his confident movements and the subtle layer of sweat covering his forehead.

In that morning they all had breakfast together, and it felt like everyone shared that same bittersweet feeling of homesickness towards each other and that very room they were sitting in. On his platform, Takeru looked upon his retainers while they talked about the recent events in their lives, sometimes asking questions but mostly keeping to himself. Chiaki talked about his college classes like they were nothing, even though his eyes sparkled as he spoke, and Ryunosuke described, elated, how his kabuki show was a complete success, with the audience being full every night and a good review having been published in a local newspaper. Kotoha talked gently about her sister's health, and offered them their first reality hit of the day when commented that she should go back to Kyoto soon, to be with Mitsuba.

After that, they all looked at each other, and the obvious thought going through their minds was that they would part again sooner than they wanted to.

"But you can't go away before tasting my new and improved sushi, Kotoha-chan!" exclaimed Genta in his enthusiastic way, and got into a long story of how much he learned in France, and how creative was the french approach to sushi. He wasn't yet quite over the fact that Alata didn't like his sushi, and that Kotoha called him a 'specialist', which he still wasn't sure to be a joke. "I defy you to call my sushi plain now!" he was now shouting to Ryunosuke, and Mako felt her heart very light, sitting there with them, laughing with them and listening to the sound of their voices. Her eyes met with Takeru's in that moment, and he offered her a swift, secret smile. A shiver went down her spine, and she breathed out slowly.

"What about you, Mako-chan? Besides getting a tan, what else did you do in Hawaii?" It was Ryunosuke's voice. She blinked twice, taking her eyes off Takeru with a nearly physical effort, and smiled softly.

"Nothing important. I got to know my parents better, learned english, worked a little bit, got bored. Missed you everyday." Her voice sounded tender as her eyes laid on each one of them. "I don't plan on going back" she confessed then, expressing it out loud for the first time even to herself. "My parents still don't know it, and I probably am going to have a hard time telling them... but I can't go back. Here's where I belong." _With you..._

She raised her eyes to Takeru meaningfully, and felt an unexpected warmth fill her body when he nodded his head once in agreement. What exactly was happening to her? Why all of a sudden her feelings towards him were...

"What about Tono-sama?", asked Kotoha with a big smile on her face. "He didn't say anything about his year."

"Haa", started the head of the Shiba clan, hesitating as it seemed he didn't know how to answer. "I didn't do much. I just kept on training every day, being watchful of any suspected Gedoushuu activity."

"Boy, you definitely don't know how to have fun, do you?", blurted out Chiaki, sounding playfully revolted. As Ryunosuke accused the wood samurai of being disrespectful with Tono, everyone – including Takeru himself – let out a laugh.

Everything felt normal, natural between them. After breakfast, Genta went out to get the ingredients to his special sushi lunch as the other five followed their established routine and went outside for sword practicing. And even though in the past Mako always loved the training sessions, today all she seemed to want to do was sit down and watch as Kotoha fought Chiaki until they both got tired and went inside, while Takeru and Ryunosuke's sword clash seemed to last forever.

Takeru's style had improved a lot, but this she had noticed before, when he was still under Buredoran's influence. He was in fact so skilled that gave them a real hard time fighting him, and now Ryunosuke could barely keep up with his skill. While Mako watched, Tono disarmed Ryu-san about three times in a roll, until the water samurai playfully gave up.

"I need some rest please, Tono!" he asked in his always formal ways, his big, captivating smile shining as he bowed to Takeru. "You are too good for me."

"Mmm." Tono smiled and nodded, looking a little uncomfortable as he always did when Ryunosuke acted too much like a vassal and not much like a friend.

"I'll be your opponent, Takeru" said Mako then, getting up and walking towards them. "Shiraishi Mako, mairu" she uttered, a big smile rising on her lips. Takeru smiled back, his eyes fixed on hers.

"Prepare yourself", he said with his deep, low voice, while raising his bamboo sword.

"Hai", Mako answered, taking her position.

The first stroke was hers, rapidly stopped by Takeru's sword. Yes, he was quicker. She moved her feet and drew her sword across the air sideways, but he blocked her again, forcing Mako to take a small jump back. He was stronger too. But she wouldn't give up easily, and quickly blocking his attack she turned around and tried to get on his open spot, unsuccessfully. Then, his sword touched her stomach lightly, as if he restrained his strength at the last minute. She took a step back, smiling, and prepared her next stroke.

"I'm rusty", she said.

"You're fine", he replied. Their swords met repeatedly in the air, before them both turned around and stepped back, striking again in the next moment.

"You're better", she retorted. And then, his sword touched her arm, coming too quickly for her to block or deflect. "I see now why Ryunosuke got tired."

A layer of sweat started to arise on her forehead, but she felt good. To fight Takeru was like being in the presence of a real artist – a skilled dancer, a great performer. And the way he looked straight inside her eyes, his rigid expression, combined with the chivalrous manner his strokes were held back before touching her… She felt goosebumps.

She also got distracted, and when the tip of his sword touched her stomach, she lost her balance and fell.

"Are you alright?" he asked, putting his sword down and kneeling by her side. For a moment, all she could do was laugh at herself.

"Yes, I'm just embarrassed", she answered finally, a big smile on her face. He smiled back at her, offering his hand to help her up. She held his hand, feeling his skin. Years of sword wielding made it rough and coarse, but his touch was still warm and gentle. She wrapped her fingers around his and bit her lip when he pulled her up almost by himself.

They were close again, like earlier, and she felt her heart pounding as loudly as before.

"Takeru…" she said softly, nothing but a whisper. "I…"

Her hand rose, as if it had a life of its own, and touched his face. It was smooth. She caressed his cheek with her fingertips, touching his mole and then the corner of his lips. His eyes widened as he looked down to her, seeming both surprised and entranced.

"M-Mako…" he whispered under his breath, his lips parting just a little bit. He closed his eyes for a second, before opening them up again only halfway and staring at her with an inexplicable _surrendered_ expression.

She just couldn't resist anymore.

Her feet rose, taking her face next to his very slowly. Actually, it felt as if time had stopped for her. Nothing moved around them but a light breeze that touched their hair and made the tree leaves rattle softly. She looked deeply into his eyes, seeing her own image reflected deep inside his pitch dark pupils. He lowered his eyes a little bit, focusing on her lips for half a second, but almost immediately he looked back up to stare at her eyes. In that moment, they stood so still that their lungs didn't even dare to breathe, and the only sound Mako could really hear were the echoes of her pounding heart in her ears. Her hand was still on his cheek, with her thumb resting on the corner of his lips. And part of her felt it could just lie there for all eternity, caring for nothing but the smoothness of that skin. Then she suddenly knew, just like that - she could have stayed in this moment forever.

But she also understood something else.

That yes, she loved him. Not as a lord or a comrade. Not as a brother or a son. And she didn't love him because he was brave and strong. She didn't love him because he was able to care for other people so deeply he would gladly put his own life in jeopardy for the chance to save a complete stranger . And she didn't love him for his past burden, or for the persistent sadness in his eyes. She didn't love him because he was a handsome, attractive man that made her shiver. And particularly, even though that felt incredibly remarkable at that very moment, she didn't love him because he had the warmer skin she ever touched.

Why do you love someone?

Love is not something you can taste, smell, touch or hear. Love is not something you can hold with your hands and keep it steady to observe and ponder. And more importantly, love is not something anyone can explain.

The only thing you can do with love – and if you're blessed enough you will – is what Mako did at that moment, that precious five seconds when time stood still: _feel it_.

It was like the breaking of a spell when she let her breath out slowly through her lips. And as she finally could move, rising her face towards his, she felt his fingers touching tentatively the back of her hand, and sliding down to her arm under her sleeve. He leaned over her, and somehow she understood that, at that moment, he was not just that Takeru she knew. He was Takeru, of course, but he was also something more than that. The mystery inside his eyes parted like a path through raging flames, revealing some kind of basic, primal instinct. And as Takeru's face got closer and closer to hers, she found out she just couldn't look away, not even if she wanted to. She was utterly and totally hypnotized by his stare. And looking inside his eyes, it was like finding herself face to face with more than just a man: at that precise moment, Takeru seemed to her like a pure force of nature.

_Takeru_, she thought, but when her lips parted no sound was heard. She felt his warm breath touch her skin and began to close her eyes…

An autumnal orange leaf fell softly from the tree above them, dancing in the breeze. And Takeru's lips touched hers, for the first time.

Electricity. It crossed her skin, making her shudder through and through. His lips were soft in texture, and incredibly warm. And as his mouth covered hers with an unsuspected hunger, his hand rose to hold her neck tightly in his grip, almost possessively. She melted under his touch, letting her hand fall on his shoulder and find its way down to his chest. She felt his heart race under her fingers as Takeru turned his head and deepened the kiss. His heart felt just like hers, pounding at the exact same rhythm, as if dancing to the same soundless song.

The world had disappeared. The only thing that existed was his coarse fingers on the sensitive skin of her neck, and the taste of his lips lingering inside her mouth. Her legs felt numb, as if disconnected to the rest of her body, the same way her ears just seemed to stop working. And that was probably the most powerful moment she ever experienced.

_Is this what love tastes like?_, her mind asked dreamily as Takeru's lips finally left hers. But she didn't open her eyes immediately. In case it was a dream, she just didn't want to wake up.

But finally, slowly, she opened her eyes. Takeru was looking the other way. She took long three seconds to understand what was happening. And then she looked at the same direction as the Shiba clan head. At the veranda, with identical expressions of astonishment, were Kotoha, Chiaki, Ryunosuke, Genta and Hikoma-san.

And Takeru's hand was still at her neck, like the compromising evidence of a crime.


	3. Hard questions

Chapter 3 (tee-hee!) Hope you like it ^^

**3****.**

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><p>The sound from Kotoha's flute reached her ears as she just sat there, completely still. It had been almost an hour since Jii-san and Takeru had gotten inside for a private talk. And even though she really didn't feel like it, Mako smiled at the youngest samurai. She knew Kotoha was playing that song to calm her down or maybe cheer her up, and it felt like a bad retribution to show no gratitude at all.<p>

But the truth was that she felt rather uneasy about how everything played out. And, even though the taste of Takeru's lips lingered on hers like an indelible scorch, this entire situation didn't feel at all like the bliss it should have been. And she didn't feel any better after Ryunosuke sat by her side at the veranda with a grave expression on his face.

"It's a taboo", the kabuki actor explained to her with a serious but somewhat gentle voice tone. "It's stated that a lord should marry someone from a noble bloodline, and even though I'm not sure how applicable is it to modern day samurais, he should definitely not have permission to marry one of his retainers." He stared at her with worrisome eyes. "In our case, the implications are even heavier, since if you and Tono got married, then Shiba's fire Mojikara or Shiraishi's heaven Mojikara might not get passed ahead. This could be bad for the next generation of Shinkengers. And our mission is, as it always has been, bigger than our own personal dreams."

"It was just a kiss", Mako replied, and her voice sounded rougher than she meant to. _Next generation of Shinkenger_… "Please, don't overstate it."

But Ryunosuke's expression didn't alter much when his limpid, trustworthy eyes seemed to ask silently for her to understand what he meant.

"With all the respect I do have for you and for Tono", he said gently, "that was not just a kiss, Mako-chan."

"I need to take a bath, it's almost time for lunch", she muttered. And as she started to turn away from him, she instantaneously felt an enormous guilt. Ryunosuke was just trying to help and it obviously wasn't his fault that things were the way they were. He didn't make the rules up, after all. Besides, he had sacrificed more than any of them to follow his destiny as a samurai. Mako remembered how hurt he was for abandoning the kabuki theater during the year they fought together. She recalled sleeping by his side on a park bench, her pink blanket around them as if they were two lost children experiencing pretty hard times. Back then, she tried everything she could think of to make him feel better… or at least less bad.

_And well, _she thought, turning back and looking at Ryunosuke's face, _that is exactly what he is trying to do for me now._

When she first realized that everyone was there watching them kiss, she took a step away from Takeru as she felt just slightly embarrassed and exposed - which was of course no good at all, but not _that_ terrible. Obviously she'd rather not have an audience for this kind of moments, especially given the type of feelings Takeru's touch aroused inside her, but still… no harm done, right?

It was until she heard the tone of Hikoma-san's voice.

"Tono", he called out with a severe expression on his face.

And it was as if Takeru knew exactly what was going through Jii's head, since he simply nodded and followed his mentor inside for a – long, excruciatingly long – talk. Mako just stood there, glancing at Kotoha's perplexed and confused eyes, Ryunosuke's grave expression and Chiaki's somewhat mischievous stare.

"Ha!" blurted Genta then, purposely relieving the tension. "I brought the key ingredients to a sushi banquet you'll never forget! Check these out", he proceeded, showing the contents of his wood basket. "I got haddock, mango fruit, a pineapple, and…" he took a moment to grab a white pot and wave it around a little bit. "…cream cheese!" He smiled directly at Mako and she couldn't help but smiling back. "Let's see whose sushi is plain now, right?" he exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, Ryu-san." She said, looking deeply at Ryunosuke's eyes. "I didn't mean to be rude. I just feel uneasy about this whole situation." She murmured, trying to remain calm as she stood up to go inside. "But thanks for worrying about me. You too, Kotoha-chan. Genta-san, I look forward to eating your new sushi. Do your best at making it, ok?"

Actually, they were all good friends and were certainly doing the best they could to appease a rather uncomfortable situation. But still, she felt she just needed to be by herself for now, to calm down and maybe sort her feelings out.

"Eh, Nee-san" said Chiaki when she passed by his side at the veranda door. "I wouldn't worry about all these rules if I were you. Rules are meant to be broken." She looked at his face and saw his reassuring, paradoxically gentle smirk. "Besides, no one will disagree that our _Tono-sama_ definitely needs to relax."

"Chiaki!" shouted Ryunosuke, and as she went inside to take her bath the sound of their altercation seemed to follow her, loud and shrill.

_He is right, it was not just a kiss_, she said to herself as her body immersed in the warm and scented water that filled up the ofuro. _It was…_ but she didn't find the words to describe it. Closing her eyes, she recalled the grip of his sturdy fingers at the back of her neck, and the heat spread by the touch of his skin on hers. She felt a shiver down her spine, reliving for a moment how she felt when his lips parted hers and she tasted his mouth.

_What if we just can't be together?_ Her eyes opened up abruptly. What if it was bound to be over before it had even begun properly? _Rules are meant to be broken_, said Chiaki, and even though she never considered herself a rebel by any means, right now she agreed to that statement with all her heart. Her mind was walking around in circles from that moment on, floating from the entranced stare on Takeru's eyes to the taste of his lips, and back to Ryunosuke's serious expression. _Our mission is bigger than our own personal dreams._

Well that was Ryunosuke's way, alright. Ryu-san would abandon anything to fulfill his duty as a samurai. He would have turned his back on anything. _Even love._

Was Takeru that way too? And that was the key question, the main reason why she was feeling so uneasy. _Because when Jii-san called for him, he just nodded and followed._ He glanced at her just once as he got inside the house, and she couldn't quite define his expression. Was he worried? Sad? Mad? _And,_ _more importantly,_ _does he love me back?_

Everything had happened so fast… before the sun rose that morning, she was just happy to be back here, to the one place she could call home and really mean it. And even after that, she experienced the joyful peace of their shared breakfast and the familiarity of their sword practice… everything felt like a dream, up until that very moment when Hikoma-san's voice felt so heavy and consternated that it sent a cold shiver down her spine.

_Takeru's expression…_ ah, but he _had_ to love her back. After all, that was not just a kiss, like even Ryunosuke had pointed out. _It was…_ and her mind went back full circle to reliving that single extraordinary moment. Her fingertips touched her own lips as she closed her eyes again and felt her body to relax inside the bath. _Takeru…I should talk to him. I should… kiss him once more._

But she would only see him again briefly by lunchtime.

As Mako left the bathroom she met Takeu in the corridor, and they walked towards the main room together. She glanced at him with worrisome eyes and an unasked question lingering on her expression. He looked back at her, but his thoughts were still a mystery.

"We will talk later" he said underneath his breath as they walked through the round door to the main room. And there was something in his voice… for a moment she just stood there, as if paralyzed, while he kept on going and sat on this platform as usual. Genta was finishing up the preparations, and everyone else had already sat down at their respective spots. Her eyes met with Hikoma-san's for a second, but Genta took her both hands in his and practically dragged her inside.

"Come on, come on! It's time for Mako-chan to taste my special sushi!", he exclaimed, having her seated before a short table with the sushi pieces perfectly arranged. He had drawn a happy face using the sushi. She couldn't help but smile to the sixth Shinkenger at that sight.

"Thank you, Genta-san."

"Itadakimasu!" Kotoha and Chiaki's voices sounded cheerfully, and everyone else followed their lead.

Mako raised her eyes to look at Tono for a moment, the salty taste of the soy sauce making her feel inexplicably appeased. His eyes met hers with a sad, heartfelt expression shining inside them. _I love you_, she thought, and gave him a small, rather shy smile. For a moment, the look on his face didn't change at all, making her heart skip a beat. But then, faint as a mirage, his expression seemed to lighten up a little bit, and his lips offered her again that fragile, swift secret smile of his. And that smile alone was able to make her heart race and her legs seem numb. _Do you love me back?_, that question jumped inside her mind like a fish breaks the water surface. And that was the hardest of questions, wasn't it?

Night seemed to fall sooner than it should. As the milky white moon shone over the Shiba mansion, Mako prepared herself to sleep. Outside the window of her room a breeze made the tree leaves rattle just like they did back when Takeru's lips met hers.

She didn't know where he was, actually. After lunch Takeru went for a walk followed by Genta while she stayed with Kotoha talking about Hawaii and hearing everything about Mitsuba. Ryunosuke and Chiaki stood closely, listening to their talk while playing a card game with each other. The youngest Shinkenger was talking about how she planned on going back to Kyoto on the next day, which immediately took Mako's mind off her issue with Takeru long enough for her to feel honestly sad about Kotoha's departure.

"You can't go tomorrow", said Chiaki with an awkwardly serious expression on his face. "I mean!" he uttered, raising his chin with a sudden defying attitude. "Not until Ryunosuke's big kabuki presentation on Saturday. Nee, Ryunosuke?"

"Haa!", answered the water samurai, bowing his head a little bit. "I would love if you'd all come and watch me." And then, he offered the girls a cheerful smile.

"Mmm" said Kotoha, seeming doubtful at first. But then, she offered Ryunosuke her sweetest smile. "I'm staying then, to see Ryu-san perform."

"Yoshi!", exclaimed Chiaki, smiling at her. And then, he youthfully placed a card on the floor between him and Ryu-san. "I beat Ryunosuke again!" His contempt was so obviously big it made Mako laugh for the first time since breakfast. "Punishment game!", he declared, taking his Shodophone from his pocket and folding it as the kabuki actor moaned loudly. His face was already full of scribbled symbols and marks.

Mako actually gave up on waiting for Takeru to get back and decided she'd go to bed early. She talked as if she was still having trouble because of the time zone, but of course she actually couldn't just sleep. Taking her time to slowly brush her hair by the window, she wished her mind would stop and be silent for a while. She wished, particularly, that she didn't feel that odd emptiness inside her, that uninvited feeling of total _incompleteness_.

The heaven samurai closed her window slowly, putting her hairbrush down. Then, she heard a mild knock outside her door.

"It's me", said Takeru's voice. Mako's heart started to jump under her breast, and she felt suddenly dizzy, as if there was too much blood flowing to her brain at that moment.

"Just one minute" she replied dreamily, tying a robe over her nightgown. _This is it_, she more felt than thought, as her hand reached out and touched the door. In slow motion, she saw her fingers lay on the wood surface, and pull it sideways. As the door slid it revealed, piece by piece, Takeru's face. When her eyes met his, her heart skipped a beat. "Come in" she managed to mumble as she stepped back and gave him space to enter.

"I hope I'm not an inconvenience", he said, looking at her outfit and then looking away. She slightly frowned her eyebrows. _Why is he being so polite?_ "Mako", he said as soon as the door closed, leaning his body against it. There was something about his posture, the way he just stood there, breathing slowly… _What is it?_

"Takeru", she replied. She tried to look into his eyes, but he was looking down. _What is going through his mind?_ "What happened?" she whispered. Her heart sounded as loud as a drum.

"I came here" he started, his deep voice sounding just a little louder than a whisper. "To apologize."

"Apologize?", she echoed.

"Jii said-" Mako's fingertips silenced his voice when she touched his lips. Surprised, he looked up to her eyes.

"Shhh. I don't want to know." Her voice sounded hoarser than usual as she stepped closer to him. She had a serious expression in her eyes when she brought her face near his, with their noses almost touching each other. "And I can't accept your apologies."

She looked deeply into his eyes, noticing that they had an almost childlike quality, widened by surprise as they were. And then, she smiled. A tender smile. "I'm going to kiss you now", she informed before lifting her chin up and touching his lips with hers. She gave him plenty of time to avoid it, but he simply didn't.

And _that_ was the answer she was looking for all along, she noticed, when his body seemed to shiver and his arms suddenly embraced her waist. _Electricity._ She felt her body being pulled against his as she put her arms around his neck and his lips parted over hers. She felt the heat coming from his skin like he was on fire underneath his clothes, and that heat enveloped her, burning her from the inside. Breathing heavily, she took her face away from his for a moment, searching for his eyes with hers.

"Even if it _is_ forbidden" she whispered, her hips being drawn against his as if they were magnets. "Will it stop us now?"

But she knew the answer to that question, even before he pulled her again to himself, covering her mouth with his.

She knew it all along.


End file.
